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A 43-year-old man indicted on charges of animal abuse and accused of neglecting to take care of his pitbull was ordered by a judge to stay away from domesticated animals.

Melchor Michael Antolin appeared before Superior Court of Guam Magistrate Judge Benjamin Sison Jr. on Wednesday. Antolin will be allowed to remain free but must follow court-ordered conditions, including attending all his court hearings, checking in with the probation office and staying away from pets.

Prohibiting contact with pets and animals isn’t a standard condition the court imposes on defendants. But Prosecutor Brycen Breazeale asked for this restriction because of the nature of the charges against Antolin.

Pitbull reportedly had 15-pound tumor

Antolin’s pitbull, named Thor, had a large tumor growing out of his leg, according to Guam Animals In Need.

Guam Animal Control authorities visited the residence in January and saw Thor was chained and had a large tumor, a statement from GAIN said.

Six months later, Animal Control followed up and found “continued neglect” so they confiscated Thor and took him to GAIN, where Thor was euthanized, according to GAIN.

The tumor was larger than a basketball and weighed about 15 pounds, said Cyrus Luhr, president of GAIN’s board of directors.

Antolin must hire an attorney

Luhr said in a statement that Antolin’s case was an important one. In GAIN’s discussions with government officials, they believe Antolin’s case is the first felony animal cruelty case related to neglect of an animal, Luhr said.

Antolin faces charges of first-degree animal cruelty as a third-degree felony and animal abandonment as a petty misdemeanor.

Because Antolin makes too much money to qualify for a free lawyer from the Public Defender Service Corporation, he must hire an attorney.

He’s expected to return to court on Sept. 12 with his lawyer to answer to the charges against him.